The present invention relates to the field of drain racks and more particularly to drain racks that can extend to cover a longer kitchen counter.
The standard method of washing cutlery, dishes, cups, saucers, glasses, pots, pans, etc. (which will be collectively designated dishes in this document) includes washing the items in hot, soapy water, rinsing them in hot, clean water and placing them into a drying rack placed on the kitchen counter adjacent to the sink. The dishes may be allowed to air dry in the rack or may be taken from the rack when only partially dry and dried with a towel. Standard dish drain racks are designed with inclines and lips so that, when placed with the lip over the edge of the sink, water dripping off the dishes etc. drains into the sink for convenient discharge into the sanitary sewer connected to the sink.
When a lot of dishes need to be washed, several racks may be needed. However, in many cases, only one may be placed with its lip over the edge of the sink. Then water accumulates on the counter. What is needed is a dish drain rack that is extendible and that allows water from any part of the rack to drain into the sink.
Several inventors have invented improvements in the standard dish drain rack. U.S. Pat. No. 1,522,921 discloses a drain mat composed of a plurality of rectangular frames with wire coils to support dishes and lift the mat above the surface on which it stands, joined together by another wire coil. U.S. Pat. No. 1,835,232 discloses a drain rack having a lower, slanted member and an upper member composed of a series of slats, attached together with a hinge. U.S. Pat. No. 4,169,638 discloses an extendible drain rack having three sections which can slide inside each other. The three sections have slanted tops and are of different heights. U.S. Pat. No. 4,372,448 discloses a device that can be used as a dish drain rack in one orientation and a cutting, washing board in the inverse orientation. U.S. Pat. No. 4,480,343 discloses a combination drain and cutting board for use with a dish rack. U.S. Pat. No. D267,125 discloses a drain board of the specific design illustrated.
However, none of the above innovations solves the problem outlined above. Development of a dish drain rack which can extend for drying of a large quantity of dishes and drain water from all sections to the sink represents a great improvement in the field of drain racks and satisfies a long felt need of the homemaker.
The present invention is an extendible dish drain rack comprising: a first section which provides support at an angle of inclination sufficient to effectively and efficiently drain water and a second section which also provides support at an angle of inclination equal to the angle of inclination of the first section. Each section has an essentially flat base and a rear leg or foot. At the front of the first section is a lip which is designed to overlap the rim of a sink. The second section is designed so that its front overlaps and rests on the rear of the first section and its angle of inclination is the same as the angle of inclination of the first section. To accomplish this, the leg or foot of the second section must be taller than the leg or foot of the first section. It will be appreciated that the exact dimensions can easily be derived from simple trigonometry once the angle of inclination, the lengths of the sections, and the overlap distances have been decided. There is also provided a mechanism for removably interconnecting the front of the second base to the rear of the first base. Thus water can drain from the rear of the second section to the front of the first section, i.e. all the way into the sink. This creates an essentially water tight joint between the two sections. In typical fashion there are a number of supports on the top surfaces of both sections for holding dishes in a water draining configuration. Clearly, further sections similar to the second section can be added. Each additional section must simply have a taller foot or leg than the preceding one. Again, the exact dimensions can be derived trigonometrically as described above.
An appreciation of the other aims and objectives of the present invention and an understanding of it may be achieved by referring to the accompanying drawings and description of a preferred embodiment.